Tap water at 0,7 EC, should i buy RO filter?

[Guest 248960]

I am looking into buy a RO filter.

But i would like to know how often you replace, sediment filter, carbon filter and membrane?

As i see, my tap water is some of the hardest i have ever read about on these forums.

 

[guest911]

think is 1 time a years

 

[maryjane481]

There is no substitute for an RO water system. It will keep your ph stable throughout your grow. Your plants will love you for it.
You can get a 100gpd system for about $140 on ebay. The sediment filters should be changed every 6 to 9 months depending on your water quality. The RO membrane will last 3 years if cared for properly. It will be the best investment you could make for your operation. Cheers

 

[CaStoner]

It all depends on the TDS meter readings and flow. I bought a G.E Merlin system a few years ago and still getting low readings and flow is good, make sure you run it a few minutes first everytime to remove any leakage that might had made it through the membrane. I haven't changed mine in like 5 yr still reading low.

 

[il19z8rn4li1]

I am looking into buy a RO filter.

But i would like to know how often you replace, sediment filter, carbon filter and membrane?

As i see, my tap water is some of the hardest i have ever read about on these forums.

the highest... you haven't looked around that long then lol
because my thread is probably within the first 3-4 pages easily.

my EC of my TAP water is 0.9 - 1.0

NOW THATS HIGH!!! Pushing to the highest on the scale of water HARDNESS.
CLICK for EC to PPM converstion

I actually JUST TODAY, about 20mins ago order myself this WATER test kit(LINK HERE), to test my TAP water(which comes from a WELL) and my rain water, might as well test other peoples water too lol comes with about 500 tests :-D

So, I thought as you did... I called up a lot of places in regards to getting a RO system. They all informed me that with MY water... it would cost no less then $400 for a GOOD system that wouldnt
get spent to quickly, since my EC was nearly 1


SO not having that kinda cash laying around... I just opted for plan B, which sucks but works, RAIN WATER.

I ended up just collecting my rain or melting snow in order to get my water. Pain in the ass most of the time though...meh


You dont have it that bad... yours is almost half of mine lol You should have no problem getting a good RO system for about 200 bucks or less.

:-D Good luck my friend, shall you never experience the "road bumps" i have endured lol

Cheers :-D

 

[Bunz]

A R/O system can be one of the best investments made. We spend thousands upon thousands of dollars building our systems, but many neglect the lifeblood of all life.........water!!!

There are things that have to be taken into account before picking out a r/o system.
1. What is the psi of the cold water line where you will be installing your r/o system? The advertised "gallons per day" rating of the system is based on 55 psi. If your psi is lower, the gpd will lower also. Anything below 40 psi is recommended to install a booster pump.
2. How do you plan to hook up your system? There are many ways to hook it up, so make sure you have that planned prior to ordering/buying your system. This way you avoid unnecessary runs to Home Depot/Lowes to get parts you should have ordered with the system.
3. Do you plan to use the system to provide you with drinking water from a spicket on the sink? If so, you will need a system with a pressurized holding tank that will be under the sink. If not and you will be using a storage container (i.e. plastic barrel) with a float valve, make sure you use a auto shutoff valve (asov) to relieve any pressure on the line feeding the float valve.
4. Order your system with a blackflush valve for the membrane. Backwashing the membrane will extend the life of the membrane 2-3 x's.

Don't buy your r/o system from a hydro store. Most of the ones that say they are "hydro specific" are full of shit. Just like adding the word "marine" in front of auto parts, it gives the retailer a reason to hike the price.

Do some reading at www.airwaterice.com . I bought my system there over 5 years ago and their customer service is beyond awesome. I get an email every 6 months reminding me to change my filters and any email I've ever sent them has been answered with 4 hours.

Bunz

 

[BasementBreeder]

As an alternative to spending $100-200+ on a RO filter(plus all the waste water), you could drop $30 to have your water tested. From here, you could chose nutrients that compliment your water profile.

I've used tap water with an EC of .8 this way. I just formulated my nutrient profile to work with the 86ppm Ca and 17ppm Mg.

 

[netprophet]

My water is around the same. I run the tap water version of veg+bloom and have good results. There is a built in pH regulator that drops the pH to 5.5-5.9 when I add 1-1.5 teaspoons per gallon. Check my thread, all is 1-1.5 teaspoons per gallon of TAP water. My tap is between .7 and 1 EC

 

[wdcf]

All I use is a big boy filter

 

[TribalSeeds]

When I used tap I would go through ph down like it was water. I haven't used any ph adjustments since the first week of my current grow using RO. That is priceless

 

[Guest 248960]

I have ordered a 3 stage filter and floramicro for softwater. Looking forward to it.

 

[Farm Hero]

Keep in mind that running pure R/O water can cause huge fluctuations in your pH due to no buffers being present in the water.

Some folks use a mix of 50-50 tap and R/O to combat that issue.


good luck with your grow!